Machine tools, such as various types of lathes, mills, drills, saws, etc., are widely used by craftsmen, tradesmen, and laypeople for a wide variety of jobs or projects. For example, wet saws are used to cut tiles, stones, masonry, etc. Such saws use a water spray directed on or near the cutting blade to keep down dust and facilitate cutting. However, such saws create runoff or wastewater that can accumulate under or near the saw creating a hazard. Similarly, other machine tools can create dust or debris that, if not confined, can, in the least, take time and effort to clean up or, in some situations, may create a hazard.
Various types of attachments or enclosures for machine tools are available. Many of these are safety shields to prevent an operator or bystander from being accidentally cut or injured by the tool when it is in use. However, such safety shields do little or nothing to confine the dirt, dust, debris, or runoff created by the tool. Further, such shields add significantly to the bulk of the tool and cannot be easily removed and stored.
Other available enclosures are similarly rigid and bulky. For example, a typical enclosure for a machine tool includes a number of Plexiglas® or other rigid walls or sides. Such an enclosure cannot be easily or conveniently stored. Therefore, such enclosures do not provide a water or dust containing environment that can be easily disassembled, cleaned, and packed away for easy and convenient transportation and/or storage. It is with respect to these considerations and others that the present invention has been made.